Festival of the Creative Arts: Poetry and Medical Posthumanism
By Daniella DeMauro
Among this year’s featured events during the Florida State University Office of Research’s Festival of the Creative Arts was the Poetry and Medical Posthumanism panel.
The Feb. 11 discussion between Caldwell Professor of English and Chair Andrew Epstein and Associate Professor of Medical Humanities Tana Jean Welch examined the role of poetry in medicine and how posthumanist perspectives can reshape the way people understand healthcare.
Welch and Epstein led a Q&A-style discussion in Strozier Library’s Bradley Reading Room about Welch’s latest book, Advancing Medical Posthumanism through Twenty-First Century American Poetry. This book explores the idea that posthumanism can provide a healthier foundation for the medical field.
“My book essentially argues that replacing medical humanism with posthumanism will create a healthier culture for both physicians and patients alike,” Welch says.
Welch specializes in contemporary American poetry and medical humanities. In this event she explained the ways in which posthumanism challenges the traditional structures of medicine by focusing on relationships rather than categories. This perspective is meant to help break down the divisions between health and illness through her use of contemporary poetry.
“The event was very well-attended, and the audience seemed eager to talk about the broader question of how STEM and literature, the sciences and humanities, overlap and interact with one another,” Epstein says. “We had a good discussion about what scholars mean by the concept of ‘posthumanism,’ about how it might be relevant and useful for medicine and health care, and about how recent poetry puts posthumanist thinking into practice.
“It was, as always, such a pleasure to be in dialogue with Tana about her fascinating work.”
Welch earned her doctorate in English Literature from FSU in 2013, and Epstein served as supervisor for Welch’s doctoral dissertation. They have worked closely in the past and only strengthened the conversations they had about her recent book.
“Working with Dr. Epstein is always rewarding,” Welch says. “His knowledge of poetry and theory is quite expansive and his feedback on my work always sparks ideas for new directions.”
This year marked the third annual festival, a vibrant celebration of interdisciplinary learning, bringing scholars, artists, faculty and students together to explore the connections between creativity, science, and the humanities. Featuring a wide range of events, from discussions on contemporary poetry to explorations of astronomy, the festival highlights the integration of artistic expression into all fields of study.
FSU First Lady Jai Vartikar attended the event and later shared her enthusiasm on her official Instagram account.
"They held a fascinating conversation," Vartikar wrote in a post. "As someone who has done research in the health sciences and now is an Ambassador for the Arts at Florida State, I thought this was pretty cool. We are so lucky to have such amazing faculty members here participating in events like these."
Vartikar introduced both Welch and Epstein to the audience.
“We're so fortunate that she is serving as an Ambassador for the Arts at FSU,” Epstein says. “It means a great deal to have her enthusiastic support for the humanities and the arts, and especially for the kind of exciting interdisciplinary work that the Festival of the Creative Arts and the Carothers Lectures Series are both designed to showcase. It was truly a pleasure to have her join us for this discussion.”
FoCA allows the space for this multidisciplinary approach to science and the arts through its month-long itinerary, which fosters the collaboration between the two in the events.
“The festival demonstrates the value of creativity, and highlights it as a necessity for all fields, not just the arts,” Welch says.
Through his academic work, Epstein, a scholar of modernist and contemporary poetry, engages in conversations about the ways literature interacts with science, history, and politics. His collaboration with Welch is rooted in their shared academic history, and their professional relationship has opened ways for dialogue about how poetry and the medical humanities intersect.
Their conversation also highlighted how poetry, using creativity and expression, mirrors human experiences in ways that traditional medical language cannot. Epstein noted that poetry’s ability to tackle complex topics, such as health, the environment, and human vulnerability is a vital part of the ongoing dialogue between literature and medicine.
"I am very excited that Welch's work is helping to lead the way in that direction," Epstein says.
Poetry and Medical Posthumanism was hosted in collaboration with the Carothers Lecture Series, which is a year-long series of lectures by FSU faculty.
“Dr. Paul Marty, who is the Chair of FSU's Carothers Faculty Lectures, generously invited both Tana Jean Welch and me to take part in a conversation about poetry, posthumanism, and medicine as part of this long-running lecture series last spring,” Epstein says.
Welch also highlighted her role as director of the Chapman Humanities and Arts in Medicine Program and the student-led community outreach group, Arts in Medicine. Once a year, AIM students share various projects at the Arts-Health-Humanities Symposium. Welch also is the managing editor for the College of Medicine’s quarterly journal HEAL: Humanism Evolving through Arts and Literature.
Events such as the discussion between Epstein and Welch reinforce the FoCA’s goal of interdisciplinary collaboration, in this case, demonstrating how the arts and humanities can contribute to scientific and medical advancements in meaningful ways.
Daniella DeMauro is a double major in English-Editing, Writing, and Media and in psychology.
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